Before my daughter was diagnosed with celiac disease, I loved to bring lemon squares to family gatherings. People would fight over the last lemon square. I loved the buttery shortbread crust combined with the mouth-puckering tartness and compelling sweetness.

After my daughter’s celiac diagnosis, I mourned the lack of gluten-free lemon bars. Little did I know that lemon squares are easy to make gluten-free. The density of gluten-free flours helps make a firm crust (I used sorghum and amaranth flours to boost nutrition). And I only needed to substitute cornstarch in the lemon filling to make it gluten-free.

My friend Jennifer told me she makes lemon squares with a crushed macaroon crust during Passover. I definitely need to try that next year!

Lemon squares are easier to cut when they are frozen, since they won’t ooze under the knife. Plus, they taste divine cold, so I store them in my freezer and simply transfer to the table when it’s dessert time.

In medium bowl, use pastry blender or two knives to combine butter, confectioners’ sugar and gluten-free flours until it takes on a gravely consistency, with small pea-sized lumps of butter coated in flour. Pat mixture into baking pan, making sure the crust is as evenly leveled as possible, and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven.

Sprinkle with additional confectioners’ sugar, using a sifter that’s only been used for gluten-free food. Lemon squares are easier to cut when they are frozen. Put pan in freezer. When frozen, lift out lemon squares on the parchment paper. Cut into 24 to 36 squares and store squares in an airtight container in the freezer.

16 responses to “Luscious Gluten-Free Lemon Squares”

Hello just wanted to give you a brief heads up and let you
know a few of the images aren’t loading properly. I’m not sure why but
I think its a linking issue. I’ve tried it in two different internet browsers and both
show the same outcome.

Thank you for the gluten-free recipe. I am making them for pastor appreciation month. My pastor’s wife cannot have gluten and I was at a loss of what to do. I know gluten helps bond things together since I have worked with food a lot. Thank you!

I usually have no tolerance for all the steps that baking requires, but I just may give the lemon squares a try. YOur post made them sound so yummy Eve. Could I use only rice flour instead of combining flour?

Hi Lisa!
Try the lemon squares — they are yummy and not too hard to make. You definitely don’t need to use the specific gluten-free flours I mentioned. But I wouldn’t use all rice flour, because rice flour is gritty and not as tender. It’s fine when mixed with some other GF flours, but I rarely use it on its own. You can easily sub with Bob’s Red Mill All Purpose Gluten-Free Baking Flour, which I use a lot (you can find it at Whole Foods or at some Jewels in Chicago), or you can use another pre-mixed gluten-free flour blend.

About Gluten-Free Nosh

Sharing recipes, tips and experiences forgluten-free families

My youngest daughter was diagnosed with celiac disease when she turned 2. In the past seven years, we’ve learned how to create gluten-free versions of our favorite foods and traditional Jewish foods and how to navigate through restaurants, school and birthday parties gluten-free.